DC Sniper movie returns us to a dark chapter in history

The story of the DC area snipers John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo is being brought to the silver screen next month in the film “Blue Caprice” with Isaiah Washington in the lead role.

The Beltway Sniper, a.k.a the DC Sniper attacks, were a coordinated series of shootings throughout the Washington, D.C. and Virginia area that caused great fear in the city’s populace for three long weeks. It was believed that only one sniper was responsible for all the chaos and it was also thought that the killer was a white male with a military background.

It was later discovered that the attacks had been perpetrated by two Black males, Muhammad and Malvo. Malvo was still a minor. The two had been driving around doing the shootings in a 1990 Blue Chevrolet Caprice before they were apprehended. Their rampage left 10 dead and three seriously injured.

Muhammad was sentenced to death, which was carried out via lethal injection in 2009, and Malvo was sentenced to six consecutive life sentences with no chance of parole.

The film will detail the events that led up to the two men terrorizing the city and will provide a look back at an incident that is rarely discussed in public. The film stars Tequan Richmond, the young man that played little brother Drew on the hit show “Everybody Hates Chris”, in the role of Malvo and will also feature Joey Lauren Adams, Tim Blake Nelson, and Leo Fitzpatrick in unspecified roles.

“Blue Caprice” debuted at the Sundance Film Festival, a major platform for independent artists, actors and filmmakers, and was picked up for distribution by the Sundance Selects Company. The film is set for a Sept. 13, 2013 release. It will be interesting to see the final product, especially considering the polarizing subject matter.